Placement Into a Math Zone Class

Making sure each student is in a class they need

Students come to the University of New Haven with a very broad mix of backgrounds in mathematics, and in many cases the academic preparation of a student in mathematics lags national standards, particularly for students pursuing careers in science, technology or engineering. Some students have had no college preparatory mathematics courses, while others may have taken these courses, but either did not do well, or the courses themselves were insufficiently rigorous to properly prepare students for college level mathematics. Some students have done well in high quality college preparatory math courses, but because the time that has elapsed since taking these courses, their ability to work with the mathematics has faded through lack of use.

Each student coming to UNH for the first time is asked to take a preliminary mathematics assessment survey. Students are assigned to take classes in the Math Zone based on their adjusted preliminary placement score based on this survey. This score takes into account other standardized measures of student achievement and competency in mathematics such as the SAT and ACT exams. In addition, an effort has been made to assess each student's previous academic background to determine the correctness of the test-based placement results.

To validate the correctness of the placement results, students coming in to the Math Zone for the first time are further assessed to determine if their mathematics placement is correct. If the placement is too low, the student is moved up a class, or even out of the Math Zone into MATH 1117 Calculus I, if that is appropriate. If it is too high, they can start learning math at a level that provides the greatest assurance that they can succeed in mastering mathematics.

Let us know if you are concerned about your placement

Students sometimes know their level of math skills better than a simple set of tests can probe. If after working in the Math Zone for a few days you feel strongly that you are just rusty in math, or did not do well on the placement exam, you can request a challenge exam consisting of the final exam in the class you are challenging. If you make a C or higher, you are allowed to go on to the next math class instead. Alternatively, if you feel that the class you are taking is far too difficult and challenging, let us know.

For any questions or concerns about the level of your Math Zone class, please contact the Math Zone Coordinator to request a consult on your status.

We are very much concerned that each student begins their course of study at the right level for them to succeed, not only in the course in which they are enrolled, but also in any additional math courses they may need to take.